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Hub You - Managing Creativity
Years ago I made it my desire to be successful in life and be able to give back to the world. I was raised on the principle that you should leave the world a better place than when you came.I have searched high and low, read books, magazines, websites, listened to podcasts, and watched videos seeking guidance in my goals to be, in the words of Borat, a “Great Success.”Although the idea of success is different to every person whether it be money, fame, or something as simple as to have a good family life. I have learned that the rules and advice to reach your idea of success are the same everywhere.Below is a list of the most common advice that I have collected from those who have made it. Note that in order to make the list, the advice, or some variation, had to of shown up more than once a
-Challenge: Energetic-->Indifferent
-Freedom: Independent Initiative-->Rule-Bound
-Dynamism: Excitedly Busy-->Boring/Slow
-Openness: Trust & Failures Accepted-->Failure Punished
-Idea Time: Off Task Play-->Little Off Task Play
-Playfulness: Happy & Humorous-->Dull & Serious
-Conflicts: Debated with Insight-->Warfare
-Support: People Listen-->Negative/Critical Comments
-Debates: Contentious Ideas Voiced-->Little Questioning
-Risk Taking: Act on New Ideas-->Detail & Committees
From experience, few business
The injection molding process was invented in 1872. Since then, the injection molding business and the plastic industry has ballooned into a multi billion dollar business venture. In fact, thirty two percent of plastics by weight are processed through injection molding. Injection molding has greatly helped in making the US economy boom because through it, cheap and durable consumer and industrial items essential to almost all industries is made possible.Components of the injection molding machineThe injection molding machine converts granular or pelleted raw plastic into final molded parts through the use of a melt, inject, pack and cool cycle for thermoplastics.A basic injection molding machine is typically composed of the following: injection system, hydraulic system, mold system, clampin
The ability of an organisation to create new products/services and innovate new processes is an essential skill providing a sustainable form of competitive advantage.
Given that organisations need to be creative, why are only a few really good at it and why are only a few individuals perceved as creative?
In this article we will examine the theories that underpin creative organisations and the attributes of the managers and individuals who work within them.
Individualism
Theories of why one individual may be more creative than another have changed dramatically over the last 50 years. In the 1950’s it was considered that individuals with creative flair were ‘born’ not ‘bred’ and as such the hunt was on for people with these elusive skills. This theory evolved during the 1960’s but the feeling was still that individuals could not be trained to be creative.
In the 1980’s and 90’s two new theories came to dominate the discussion surrounding creativity, these being ‘intrinsic motivation’ (how much the individual wants to be creative) and the ability of the working environment to either stifle or promote creativity, so called ‘climate’.
Table 1 – Summary of thinking on Creativity
- 1950’s – Creativity is an ability that you either have or don’t have
- 1960’s – Creativity is a function of how mentally flexible you are
- 1970’s – Creativity can only flourish if you have relevant experience
- 1980’s – You must be intrinsically motivated to be creative
- 1990’s – Creativity exists only in the right climate
- 2000's - Innovation is a combination of skills, motivation and climate
The intrinsic motivation, or desire, of an individual to be creative is linked to both their personal values and drives, tempered by the environment in which they work and we need to examine the drivers of the organisational environment next.
Environmental Trauma!
Research undertaken by Ekvall defined 10 dimensions, or characteristics, of a creative working environment. Each dimension has a scale that extends from very uncreative through to very creative and the aim is that through both observation and questionnaires the climate of a business is plotted against each of these 10 categories.
Table 2 shows what each of Ekvall’s 10 dimensions would mean in an extremely creative and a powerfully uncreative climate:
-Dimension: Creative Organisation-->Uncreative Organisation
-Challenge: Energetic-->Indifferent
-Freedom: Independent Initiative-->Rule-Bound
-Dynamism: Excitedly Busy-->Boring/Slow
-Openness: Trust & Failures Accepted-->Failure Punished
-Idea Time: Off Task Play-->Little Off Task Play
-Playfulness: Happy & Humorous-->Dull & Serious
-Conflicts: Debated with Insight-->Warfare
-Support: People Listen-->Negative/Critical Comments
-Debates: Contentious Ideas Voiced-->Little Questioning
-Risk Taking: Act on New Ideas-->Detail & Committees
From experience, few business
You've heard it all before when it comes to stats about customer retention. Acquiring a customer costs five to 10 times more than retaining one. Repeat customers spend, on average, 67 percent more. After 10 purchases a customer has referred as many as seven other people.So, if your focus is on acquiring new customers instead of keeping the ones you have, you are off the mark. Here is a brief overview on how to retain customers.- Ask. New York Mayor Ed Koch was famous for asking "How am I doing? He always knew where he stood, even if he wasn't always happy about the answer. So, survey your customers about their likes and dislikes. Then, follow through with the information you receive.- Profile. Learn as much as you can about your customers and then do something with that information to show
In the 1980’s and 90’s two new theories came to dominate the discussion surrounding creativity, these being ‘intrinsic motivation’ (how much the individual wants to be creative) and the ability of the working environment to either stifle or promote creativity, so called ‘climate’.
Table 1 – Summary of thinking on Creativity
- 1950’s – Creativity is an ability that you either have or don’t have
- 1960’s – Creativity is a function of how mentally flexible you are
- 1970’s – Creativity can only flourish if you have relevant experience
- 1980’s – You must be intrinsically motivated to be creative
- 1990’s – Creativity exists only in the right climate
- 2000's - Innovation is a combination of skills, motivation and climate
The intrinsic motivation, or desire, of an individual to be creative is linked to both their personal values and drives, tempered by the environment in which they work and we need to examine the drivers of the organisational environment next.
Environmental Trauma!
Research undertaken by Ekvall defined 10 dimensions, or characteristics, of a creative working environment. Each dimension has a scale that extends from very uncreative through to very creative and the aim is that through both observation and questionnaires the climate of a business is plotted against each of these 10 categories.
Table 2 shows what each of Ekvall’s 10 dimensions would mean in an extremely creative and a powerfully uncreative climate:
-Dimension: Creative Organisation-->Uncreative Organisation
-Challenge: Energetic-->Indifferent
-Freedom: Independent Initiative-->Rule-Bound
-Dynamism: Excitedly Busy-->Boring/Slow
-Openness: Trust & Failures Accepted-->Failure Punished
-Idea Time: Off Task Play-->Little Off Task Play
-Playfulness: Happy & Humorous-->Dull & Serious
-Conflicts: Debated with Insight-->Warfare
-Support: People Listen-->Negative/Critical Comments
-Debates: Contentious Ideas Voiced-->Little Questioning
-Risk Taking: Act on New Ideas-->Detail & Committees
From experience, few business
Born in Tokyo, Ken's upbringing was very traditional. His parents ran a small printing business and he was a studious child. Always eager to learn and to experiment with toys to see how they worked.After graduating from High School. he went on to University, where he earned a degree in Electronics. He was hired by Sony and immediately went to work in their digital Research labs, where his love of thinking ahead and excellent problem solving skills helped him to give sony a strong early market share with LCD displays and also digital cameras.In the late '80's, Ken was watching his young daughter play a Famicom console at home and realised that his company could get into the video game market. Sony executives at the time felt video games were not an appropriate field and any development was generall
- 1950’s – Creativity is an ability that you either have or don’t have
- 1960’s – Creativity is a function of how mentally flexible you are
- 1970’s – Creativity can only flourish if you have relevant experience
- 1980’s – You must be intrinsically motivated to be creative
- 1990’s – Creativity exists only in the right climate
- 2000's - Innovation is a combination of skills, motivation and climate
The intrinsic motivation, or desire, of an individual to be creative is linked to both their personal values and drives, tempered by the environment in which they work and we need to examine the drivers of the organisational environment next.
Environmental Trauma!
Research undertaken by Ekvall defined 10 dimensions, or characteristics, of a creative working environment. Each dimension has a scale that extends from very uncreative through to very creative and the aim is that through both observation and questionnaires the climate of a business is plotted against each of these 10 categories.
Table 2 shows what each of Ekvall’s 10 dimensions would mean in an extremely creative and a powerfully uncreative climate:
-Dimension: Creative Organisation-->Uncreative Organisation
-Challenge: Energetic-->Indifferent
-Freedom: Independent Initiative-->Rule-Bound
-Dynamism: Excitedly Busy-->Boring/Slow
-Openness: Trust & Failures Accepted-->Failure Punished
-Idea Time: Off Task Play-->Little Off Task Play
-Playfulness: Happy & Humorous-->Dull & Serious
-Conflicts: Debated with Insight-->Warfare
-Support: People Listen-->Negative/Critical Comments
-Debates: Contentious Ideas Voiced-->Little Questioning
-Risk Taking: Act on New Ideas-->Detail & Committees
From experience, few business
If you are interested in a career in welding, you will be surprised what the working world has to offer you. After you have established an education pertaining to welding, you will be on your way to a rewarding career. Welding can help you establish financial security and open many doors of opportunity for you. What's more, a career in welding can be rewarding and truly enrich your life.To obtain a career in welding, you will be required to undergo special schooling and instruction. In fact, after you obtain your high school diploma you can study at some colleges or at special schools that focus solely on welding. Regardless of what school you attend, you will be required to learn various aspects of welding that include, but are in no way limited to welding technology, blueprint reading, oxyacetylen
Environmental Trauma!
Research undertaken by Ekvall defined 10 dimensions, or characteristics, of a creative working environment. Each dimension has a scale that extends from very uncreative through to very creative and the aim is that through both observation and questionnaires the climate of a business is plotted against each of these 10 categories.
Table 2 shows what each of Ekvall’s 10 dimensions would mean in an extremely creative and a powerfully uncreative climate:
-Dimension: Creative Organisation-->Uncreative Organisation
-Challenge: Energetic-->Indifferent
-Freedom: Independent Initiative-->Rule-Bound
-Dynamism: Excitedly Busy-->Boring/Slow
-Openness: Trust & Failures Accepted-->Failure Punished
-Idea Time: Off Task Play-->Little Off Task Play
-Playfulness: Happy & Humorous-->Dull & Serious
-Conflicts: Debated with Insight-->Warfare
-Support: People Listen-->Negative/Critical Comments
-Debates: Contentious Ideas Voiced-->Little Questioning
-Risk Taking: Act on New Ideas-->Detail & Committees
From experience, few business
Any responsible person, even with limited formal instruction or experience, can do a simple fire risk assessment. More complex buildings will need to be assessed by a person with full training and experience in fire risk assessment.Mainly companies and building owners will be affected by the new legislation but it could be anyone who has some control over premises. Fire certificates will no longer be valid.Under the new regulations it is the responsibility of employers to do a risk assessment of their places of work, which must contain provisions concerning fire safety measures in the workplace.The responsible person must go over the risk assessment frequently to keep it current, particularly if: . There is reason to believe that it is no longer valid; or . There has been a major change i
-Challenge: Energetic-->Indifferent
-Freedom: Independent Initiative-->Rule-Bound
-Dynamism: Excitedly Busy-->Boring/Slow
-Openness: Trust & Failures Accepted-->Failure Punished
-Idea Time: Off Task Play-->Little Off Task Play
-Playfulness: Happy & Humorous-->Dull & Serious
-Conflicts: Debated with Insight-->Warfare
-Support: People Listen-->Negative/Critical Comments
-Debates: Contentious Ideas Voiced-->Little Questioning
-Risk Taking: Act on New Ideas-->Detail & Committees
From experience, few businesses define themselves as having a highly creative environment as many of the characteristics in this area go against cultural norms for business in many Western cultures, but the best are working toward the creative end of the scale, whilst the norm tends to be toward an environment that stifles creativity.
Having used Ekvall to assess the ability of an organisation to be sustain a creative environment, to then change the environment we need to look at the things that create, or drive, the organisational environment and the biggest driver of all is the prevailing management style.
Management Creativity!
In this context, a Creative Manager is not one who is themselves creative, but one who is able to manage the creativity of others and capable of building a creative environment.
Many researchers have analysed the attributes of such a person. Morgan stated that Creative Managers require 5 skills:
1. They must be proactive and flexible, not tied to rigid methods of working.
2. They must have high levels of Emotional Intelligence (see later).
3. They must possess good man-management skills.
4. They must be able to create a vision of the future for others.
5. They must have a series of competences enabling them to cope with different situations, for example in a single day they may be required to be a friend, a counsellor, a technical wizard as well as a manager.
Morgan refers to Emotional Intelligence as a key skill of the Creative Manager. Emotional Intelligence was popularised by Goleman and consists of 5 main elements:
• Self Awareness – Managers who are self-aware understand what their motivations are and why they get stressed by certain situations and people. Self awareness can be achieved through psychometric profiling.
• Self-Regulation – Sometimes you can cut the office environment with a knife when the boss is annoyed! Self-regulation is concerned with ensuring that the display of emotions are suited to the situation - getting it wrong is very off-putting for others.
• Empathy – Having a genuine interest in the feelings and emotions of others is very useful for reading situations correctly.
• Motivation – Self motivation almost goes without saying for a manager, but this is about constructive motivation not being a workaholic. The essence of this is to maintain high levels of motivation and a positive outlook even when things aren’t going well.
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